This invention relates to a device for producing an optical guide signal. Devices of this type are used mainly for installation in landing and taxi paths at airports and find their application in designating both the centre and also the edges of the taxi and landing paths.
Many requirements are imposed on guide signal devices of this type. They must indicate the course of the landing or taxi paths, they must be visible from defined directions, they must possess a high degree of operational reliability and they must comply with international and national regulations.
Numerous forms of construction of such devices are known. The main problem associated with such devices lies in providing the required lighting performance. The enormous loading occurring under an aircraft has led to extremely massive and cumbersome designs which detract from the optical performance of these prior art devices. In order to compensate for this loss of optical performance, the performance of the light source must be increased, and this, in turn, leads to the problem of dissipating heat which results in further demands upon the design of the device.